Card Range To Study

60 Cards in this Set

an ethical standard for the federal cabinet; as a group, cabinet ministers are supposed to be held accountable to Parliament for their government's actions

collective ministerial responsibility

one of four central coordinating agencies of the executive, it analyzes taxation policy and the impact of government activity of the economy

department of finance

a broad term that refers to the institutions, personnel and behavior of governmental power. in modern times, executives are the organizational centers of political systems

executive

the formal executive authority of teh governor general applied upon the advice and consultation of the cabinet is referred too as a decision of this person

governor in council

the prerogative instruments defining the office of the governor general that the monarch makes applicable to each governor general through his or her commission of appointment

letters patent

appointed by the governor in council on the advice of the prime minister to represent the monarch in each province

lieutenant-governor

a letter that explains what the prime minister expects the minister to accomplish in his or her department

ministerial mandate letter

sworn in to the privy council and bound by the rule of collective responsibility, but is only allowed to attend meetings of cabinet on request, and his or her salary and staff allotments are lower than that of full cabinet ministers

ministers of the state

ministers composed of all ministers who are appointed by the prime minister - consists of both full ministers and the Crown and minsters of the state

the ministry

decisions rendered by cabinet under the auspices of the privy council that carry legal force

orders in council

an MP who aids a minister in his or her duties, but has no statutory authority

parliamentary secretaries

powers of a monarch (or his or her representatives) that have not been bypassed by constitutional or state law

prerogative authority

the plain public service organization supporting the cabinet and prime minister

privy council office

a central coordinating agency that is constitutionally a committee of the privy council

treasury board

refers to a legislature composed of two houses

bicameral

official responsible for ensuring that relevant documents are printed and circulated and for advising the speaker of the house of the parliamentary business of the day

clerk of the house

a measure to terminate debate in the house

closure

a committee of the house in which all MPs sit in the chamber in one large committee chaired by the deputy speaker or the deputy speaker or the deputy chair of committees

committee of the whole

the end of a particular parliament, which occurs at the request of a prime minister who seeks a new mandate, or whose government has been defeated in the house of commons

dissolution

committee composed of members of both the house of commons and the senate

joint standing committees

the branch of government that makes or amends laws

legislature

government bill for raising or spending money

money bill

days on which opposition motions can be debated (20 per session)

opposition days (supply days)

45 minute period held in parliament five days a week which provides a forum for the opposition parities to try to embarrass the government, criticize its policies and force discussion on selected issues

oral question period

the schedule of pending parliamentary business

order paper

a house of commons rule that enables MPs to express themselves freely and without intimidation

parliamentary privileged

a group formed by each party in parliament. every wednesday morning when parliament is in a session, all members o the house of commons (and any senators who wish to attend) meet in their respective party groups

caucus

a bill that confers special power or rights upon specific individuals groups or corporations rather than upon society as a whole

private bill

bill sponsored by an individual MP

private members bill

involves proclaiming, publishing or declaring under the great seal that thereby becomes law

proclamation

such bills seek to change the law concerning the public as a whole. there are two kinds of these: government bills and private members bills

public bills

a device to promote public participation whereby constituents can recall an MP if he or she does not vote as instructed

recall

when the governor general, sitting in the senate chambers before the assembled members of both houses, puts the final seal of approval on the bill

royal assent

a committee that is relatively permanent for the life of a parliament

standing committee

contain rules of the house of commons that are of a general nature and more or less permanent

standing orders

bills that authorize the spending money by the government

supply (appropriation) bills

a proposal that the senate be elected, effective and equal in its representatives

triple E senate

a committee of the whole; it considers the resolutions that contain the proposals of the minister of finance

ways and means committee

motions that introduce bills to authorize the raising of money by taxation

ways and means motions

an MP assigned by each party leader to help maintain party cohesion

whip

federal organizations whose activities are closely related to the formulation of public policies. they include royal commissions, government and departmental task forces and advisory councils

advisory bodies

include a wide variety of non-departmental organizations including crown corporations, regulatory agencies, administrative tribunals and some advisory bodies

agencies

one of two or more individual who head a branch or bureau and reports directly to the deputy minister

assistant deputy minister

refers to a specific form of governemnt organization based on the premise that it should be structured to provide as much efficiency as possible and that this is best achieved by setting up a hierarchically structured decision-making process that minimizes arbitrary decision-making

bureaucracy

include a wider variety of non-departmental organizations, including crown corporations, regulatory agencies, administrative tribunal and some advisory bodies

crown agencies

refers to the composite symbol of the institutions of the state. the crown assumes a variety of duties and responsibilities

crown corporations

the administrative and managerial head of each department or ministry - senior public service

deputy minister

brings together the estimated spending requirements of all government departments and agencies fr the next fiscal years

expenditure process

an independent officer who is responsible to Parliament for the investigation of citizens complaints against the bureaucracy

ombudsman

are widely employed as sources of public policy advice to the executive. generally set up by the government to investigate an area of critical public concern and to recommend a suitable course of action

royal commissions

maintains that the two oldest parties in Canada have no central ideological interests, but rather than act as brokers of ideas, selecting those that have the widest appeal and the best likelihood of attracting electoral support

brokerage theory

an independent agent of parliament with enhanced investigative powers and a mandate to enforce compliance with the Lobbying Act and the Lobbyists Code of Conduct

commissioner of lobbying

a wing of traditional parties comprised of the national executive, standing committees and permanent national office as well as provincial associations and local constituency organizations

extra-parliamentary wing

an organized association that engages in activity that is related to government

interest groups

a vote held at a party convention that acts as an appraisal of the incumbent party leader; if he or she does not score sufficiently high on a vote, then a leadership convention will likely be held

leadership review

activity aimed at securing favorable policy decisions or the appointment of specific government personnel

lobbying

system in which popular support is divided among several parties, so that the largest party must generally form a coalition with one or more other parties to form a government

multi-party system

electoral party system in which a single party regularly wins almost every election, even though opposition parties function freely

one-party dominate system

a general theory about Canadian parties, which holds that since Canadian government has been dominated by one party - the liberal party since 1896 - the liberals are the 'natural' governing party

one-party dominate theory

system in which two major parties dominate and others have only minor political strength